Methods for finding electric vehicle (EV) charge units, status notifications and discounts sponsored by merchants local to charge units

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, charge units, computer readable media, and combinations thereof are provided, to enable color coding of charging units (CUs), to provide a visual indication to users of when a CU is available, unavailable, in progress, out of service, etc. The method also include logic for finding charge units and identifying discounts are the identified charge units. The discounts can, in some examples, be provided by merchants that may be proximate or local to a charge unit. The discount can be in the form of a discount for the charge purchased or obtained at the charge unit or discounts for goods or services offered a location of the merchant. The method executed by a processor at a charge unit or by a cloud processing logic, or by a server or servers or over the Internet, or combinations thereof.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

The present application is a continuation application of U.S.application Ser. No. 13/797,974, filed on Mar. 12, 2013, entitled“Methods and Systems for Electric Vehicle (EV) Charge LocationColor-Coded Charge State Indicators, Cloud Applications and UserNotifications.”, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 61/745,729, filed on Dec. 24, 2012, and entitled“Methods and Systems For Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging, ChargingSystems, Internet Applications and User Notifications,” which are hereinincorporated by reference.

This Application is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser.No. 13/452,882, filed Apr. 22, 2012, and entitled “Electric Vehicle (EV)Range Extending Charge Systems, Distributed Networks Of Charge Kiosks,And Charge Locating Mobile Apps”, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application No. 61/478,436, filed on Apr. 22, 2011, all ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The present invention relates to systems and methods that enableoperators of electric vehicles (EV) to obtain charge and informationregarding charge availability.

BACKGROUND

Electric vehicles have been utilized for transportation purposes andrecreational purposes for quite some time. Electric vehicles require abattery that powers an electric motor, and in turn propels the vehiclein the desired location. The drawback with electric vehicles is that therange provided by batteries is limited, and the infrastructure availableto users of electric vehicles is substantially reduced compared tofossil fuel vehicles. For instance, fossil fuel vehicles that utilizegasoline and diesel to operate piston driven motors represent a majorityof all vehicles utilized by people around the world. Consequently,fueling stations are commonplace and well distributed throughout areasof transportation, providing for easy refueling at any time. For thisreason, fossil fuel vehicles are generally considered to have unlimitedrange, provided users refuel before their vehicles reach empty.

On the other hand, owners of electric vehicles must carefully plan theirdriving routes and trips around available recharging stations. For thisreason, many electric vehicles on the road today are partially electricand partially fossil fuel burning. For those vehicles that are pureelectric, owners usually rely on charging stations at their privateresidences, or specialty recharging stations. However specialtyrecharging stations are significantly few compared to fossil fuelstations. In fact, the scarcity of recharging stations in and aroundpopulated areas has caused owners of electric vehicles to coin thephrase “range anxiety,” to connote the possibility that their drivingtrips may be limited in range, or that the driver of the electricvehicle will be stranded without recharging options. It is this problemof range anxiety that prevents more than electric car enthusiasts fromswitching to pure electric cars, and abandoning their expensive fossilfuel powered vehicles.

It is in this context that embodiments of the invention arise.

SUMMARY

In one embodiment, methods, systems, charge units, computer readablemedia, and combinations thereof are provided, to enable color coding ofcharging units (CUs), to provide a visual indication to users of when aCU is available, unavailable, in progress, out of service, etc. In otherembodiments, methods, systems and computer readable media is providedfor finding charge units and identifying discounts are the identifiedcharge units. The discounts can, in some embodiments, be provided bymerchants that may be proximate or local to a charge unit. For example,the discount can be in the form of discount for the charge purchased orobtained at the charge unit or discounts for goods or services offered alocation of the merchant.

In one embodiment, a method is provided. The method includes receivingdata, at a server, indicative that a user account has accessed acharging unit for charging an electric vehicle. The charging unit has anindicator that identifies an active charging status while the electricvehicle is charging using the charging unit and identifies a completecharging status when the electric vehicle is finished charging using thecharging unit. The method also includes receiving data, at the server,indicative of a status of charge of the electric vehicle during thecharging. The method sends a notification to a device having access tothe user account regarding status of charging during the charging of theelectric vehicle. The notification identifying a current level of chargeof the electric vehicle and an estimate of a time remaining to finishcharging of the electric vehicle. The method further including receivingan instruction, from the device, to maintain the indicator of thecharging unit in the active charging status for a set period of timeafter the electric vehicle is finished charging.

In some implementations, the method further includes receiving theinstruction at the server and sending data to the CU to maintain theindicator of the charging unit in the active charging status.

In some implementations, the indicator is a feature of the CU thatilluminates to display a color. The color that is displayed isindicative of the status of charge of the electric vehicle during thecharging. And further, wherein the color is defined by one or morecolors depending on the status of charge of the electric vehicle, andwherein at least one or more of the colors represents the activecharging status, and wherein at least one or more of the colorsrepresents the complete charging status.

In some implementations, the notification is saved to the user accountfor access from an application or a website via the device, the devicebeing one of a mobile device, vehicle electronics of the vehicle, or acomputer. In this example, the user account is accessible via theinternet that provides communication to the server and storageassociated with the server.

In some implementations, the access of the charging unit for chargingthe electric vehicle includes receiving payment via the user account,the user account having access to a history of charge activity.

In some implementations, a user interface of the device or a userinterface of the electric vehicle receives data from the server tosurface an application when the electric vehicle is determined to havearrived at the CU, the application being configured to provide optionsto login or accept to proceed with an automatic payment for charging theelectric vehicle.

In some implementations, the current level of charge sent to the deviceis sent so that a user interface of the device shows a graphic of thecurrent level as the current level changes to become more charged orfinished charging.

In some implementations, the estimate of the time to charge isdynamically calculated based on a current charge level of the electricvehicle and a charging rate capability of the CU.

In some implementations, the instruction from the device includes dataenabling payment of a fee charged to the user account to enable themaintaining the indicator of the charging unit in the active chargingstatus.

In some implementations, the set period of time is based on a fee paidvia the user account or paid by a sponsoring merchant that is local orproximate to the CU.

In some implementations, the indicator is a light emitting diode (LED)with a color shade that changes to different colors, or a colored LED,or a plurality of colored LEDs that turn on a different times dependingon the status of charge.

In some implementations, the CU includes a message function to enableusers proximate to the CU to send a message to the user accountrequesting that the electric vehicle be moved when the indicatoridentifies the complete charging status.

In one embodiment, a method is provided. The method includes receiving,at a server, a request from a device to find a one or more charge unitsfor charging an electric vehicle at a geographic location. The methodalso includes accessing, by the server, a first database to identifycharge units that are associated with the geographic location. Themethod then accesses, by the server, a second database to identifydiscounts available at the charge units identified to be associated withthe geographic location, wherein one of the identified discounts on oneof the charge units is provided by a first merchant having a businesslocation proximate to the one of the charge units. The method thenincludes sending, by the server, data to the device that identifies oneor more of the charge units that are associated with the geographiclocation. The data further includes information regarding identifieddiscounts available at one or more of the identified charge units.

In some implementations, the identified discounts include discounts forgoods or services offered by the first merchant at the business locationor credit for charged used at the charge unit, or a credit for futureelectric vehicle charge or goods or servers, or a combination thereof.

In some implementations, the method further includes sending, by theserver, data to enable access for charging for the electric vehicle atthe charge unit and monitoring charge used at the charge unit, whereinat least one of the identified discounts is provided before, during orafter the charge is used for charging the electric vehicle.

In some implementations, the request by the device is provided via anapplication executed on the device, or via a website accessed by thedevice, or via a user account accessed by the device, and wherein thedevice is one of a portable device or a device of a vehicle, and whereinthe server is provided with access to one or more storage devices thatstore at least the first and second databases.

In some implementations, the identified discounts vary over time,wherein discounts increase dynamically by predefined amounts when chargepumps experience less use and reduce dynamically by predefined amountswhen the charge pumps experience more use.

In some implementations, the one of the identified discounts isadditionally provided by a second merchant, such that the first merchantand the second merchant share the discount provided at the one of thecharge units, and wherein the second merchant has a business locationproximate to the one of the charge units.

In one implementation, a method is provided, which includes receiving,at a server, a request from a device to find a one or more charge unitsfor charging an electric vehicle at a geographic location. The methodincludes accessing, by the server, a first database to identify chargeunits that are associated with the geographic location. The method thenaccesses, by the server, a second database to identify discountsavailable at the charge units identified to be associated with thegeographic location, wherein one or more of the identified discounts onone of the charge units is shared by a first merchant and a secondmerchant having respective business locations proximate to the one ofthe charge units. The method also includes sending, by the server, datato the device that identifies one or more of the charge units that areassociated with the geographic location. The data further includinginformation regarding identified discounts available at one or more ofthe identified charge units. The method includes sending, by the server,data to enable access for charging for the electric vehicle at thecharge unit and monitoring charge used at the charge unit, wherein atleast one of the identified discounts is provided before, during orafter the charge is used for charging the electric vehicle. In someimplementations, the request by the device is provided via anapplication executed on the device, or via a website accessed by thedevice, or via a user account accessed by the device. In someimplementations, the device is one of a portable device or a vehicledevice configured for accessing the internet. In some implementations,the server is provided with access to one or more storage devices thatstore at least the first and second databases.

In some implementations, the identified discounts include discounts forgoods or services offered by the first merchant or the second merchant,or discounts to provide credit for charged used at the charge unit, ordiscounts provided via the user account. In some implementations, theuser account is an account managed by a cloud service that providesaccess to one or more web pages for a plurality of users, each of saidusers being able to access their respective user accounts using thedevice over the internet.

In one embodiment, a method for managing charge status of an electricvehicle (EV) at a charge unit (CU) is provided. The method includesdetecting connection of a charging connector of the charge unit to avehicle charge port of the EV. The method also includes receiving chargestatus of the EV while the charging connector is connected to the CU andactivating a light at the CU. The light is set to a color that isindicative of the charge status of the EV. The method then includeschanging the color of the light as the charge status of the EV changes.The method executed by a processor at a charge unit or on cloudprocessing logic over the Internet, or combinations thereof.

In one embodiment, detecting connection includes establishing initiationof data exchange between the EV and CU, the exchange of data can bethrough a data line in the charging connector or a wireless link betweenthe EV and CU.

In one embodiment, the charge status includes determining a level ofcharge of a battery of the EV.

In one embodiment, the light at the CU is either connected to the CU oris proximate to the CU, and the color is set by a color shade on alight, a light emitting diode (LED) with a color shared that moves todifferent colors, a colored LED, or a plurality of colored LEDs thatturn on a different times depending on the desired color for the chargestatus.

In one embodiment, a color is assigned to levels of charge of thevehicle, including a color to indicate a full level of charge of the EV,and wherein, a notification is generated and sent to a user account thatwas used to obtained charge for the EV at the CU.

In one embodiment, the notification is sent for one of a progress ofcharge, or to indicate that the EV has reached the full level of charge.

In one embodiment, the method also includes enabling a user account thatwas used to obtained charge for the EV at the CU to pay a fee, from aremote device, to change the color of the CU to a non-full state evenwhen the EV is at the full level.

In one embodiment, the method also includes enabling sending anotification to a user account that was used to obtained charge for theEV at the CU, the notification providing a status of charge of the EV.

In one embodiment, the status of charge of the EV is published to a useraccount that is accessible over the Internet using a device havingaccess to the Internet.

In one embodiment the color is illustrated on a graphical user interfaceon a display, when the user account is accessed to view the status ofcharge of the EV.

In one embodiment the CU includes a push notification function to enableusers proximate to the CU to send a notification to the user accountrequesting that the EV be moved when the color indicates that the EV hasreached a full state of charge and is not moved from a spot that isoccupying the CU.

In one embodiment, the method also includes receiving a request from alocal EV to locate a CU, and an available CU is activated to blink thecolor to enable visual identification from an area proximate to the CU.

In one embodiment, the method is executed by a CU having electronics,communication links to the Internet to access cloud processing logic, orcan be executed partially by cloud processing logic and logic of the CU,or also process can be made or assisted by processing logic ofelectronics of the EV connected to the CU, or combinations thereof.Computer readable media can also be provided, which will hold processinginstructions for carrying out any one of the method operations, asinstructions, or by circuit or chips that are programmed to executeinstructions or chips or circuits that communicate with a network, suchas the internet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a charge unit having a color indicator, whichprojects the charge state of an electric vehicle (EV) connected to theCU, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a charge bank of CUs, and various colorindicators, and codes for notifying users of charge state, in accordancewith one embodiment.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a user mobile device, and notificationsthat can be provided, along with color indicators, in accordance withone embodiment.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of color codes used in a parking area,where color is used to identify open spaces with CUs that are available,in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example flow chart of a method, to provide colorindicators on CUs, notifications for status, remote pay to extend use ofa CU, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a user with a mobile device approaching a CU,next to an EV, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 shows a user accessing a QR code of the CU, in accordance withone embodiment.

FIG. 8 shows an example screen with instructions, so the user can syncwith the device and select the level of charge, in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 9 shows a vehicle arriving at a charging slot, in accordance withone embodiment.

FIG. 10 shows a user scanning a QR code to sync with a CU, in accordancewith one embodiment.

FIGS. 11-13 illustrate examples of connecting a CU to an EV andinterfacing with the CU via a mobile device, in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 14 shows an example of access to a user account, and paymentoptions and discounts provided or associated with local merchantsproximate to the CU, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 15 shows an example where a user can receive notification duringcharge sessions and ways of paying or buying goods to say in the slotwhen charge is complete, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example of a user's device obtaining a code froma CU at a charge unit install point (CUIP), in accordance with oneembodiment.

FIG. 17 illustrates an APP of a device making connection to charge cloudservices, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 18 illustrates an example process when a user logs in to an App,and the App provides the user, Bob, with information about his vehicle,in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 19 further shows a parking structure, which can include one or morefloors and ceiling charge cords, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 20 illustrates an example of a vehicle having multiple charge cells(e.g., batteries B1 and B2), in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 21 illustrates an example where multiple CUs can be connected tomultiple charge units (e.g., segmented batteries) of an EV, inaccordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 22 shows how tracking the CEs, the data can be monitored by powerstations to calculate grid local metrics.

FIG. 23 illustrates a clustering of discounts for proximate locatedbusinesses that provide discounts, promotions, or deals to CUs next tothe businesses, in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 24 illustrates an example of a GUI screen to allow businesses toestablish clustered promotions, by locating CUs and defining promotions,in accordance with one embodiment.

DETAILED EMBODIMENTS

In one embodiment, method are provided to enable color coding ofcharging units (CUs), to provide a visual indication to users of when aCU is available, unavailable, in progress, out of service, etc. Thevisual indicators, in one embodiment are color coded. The color codingcan, in one embodiment, be visible to drivers or users in proximity tothe CU. In other embodiments, the color indicators can also be publishedto the internet to allow remote users to quickly identify proximate CUsand identify their current use state. In other embodiments, users, viaapplications (on mobile devices or on the vehicle) can identifyproximate CUs, their status, make reservations for particular CUs, andreceive notifications of the progress. In one embodiment, be makingreservations head of arriving at a CU, the user is best assured ofhaving access to connect the EV to the CU, so that the charging processcan be optimized.

Embodiments are also provided for finding charge units and identifyingdiscounts that are identified proximate to charge units. The discountscan, in some examples, be provided by merchants that may be proximate orlocal to a charge unit. In one example, proximate and local may be adistance that is walkable from the charge unit, such as to allow thedriver to walk to the merchant's location while the electric vehiclecharges and then return. In specific examples, walkable may be adistance that is less than about 30 minutes of human walking (e.g., eachway to and from the CU and the merchant). In other embodiments, thewalking distance is less than about 15 minutes of human walking, eachway. In still another embodiment, the distance is less than about 5minutes of human walking, each way. The discount can be in the form of adiscount for the charge purchased or obtained at the charge unit ordiscounts for goods or services offered a location of the merchant. Themethod executed by a processor at a charge unit or by a cloud processinglogic, or by a server or servers or over the Internet, or combinationsthereof.

A number of embodiments are described below, with reference to specificinventive topics and/or sub-embodiments that relate to electricvehicles, charging methods, wireless device synchronization to exchangeinformation regarding charging events, cloud based processingtechnologies to share charge availability information, discounts acrossa charge supply grid, geo-location mapping and charge finding, userinterfaces, charge unit identification systems, user interfaces to unifyacquisition of charge, reservation of charge, charge units with colorindicators to signal charge status and availability, charge supplysystems and infrastructure for connecting charge to electric vehicles(EVs), cloud based databases and distributed data centers for trackingcharge usage and sharing charge usage with charge providers, utilities,drivers of EVs, owners of charge units (CUs) and owners or managers ofcharge unit install points (CUIPs).

In one implementation, the listed embodiments may be viewed broadly todefine separate defined embodiments. In other implementation, the listedembodiments may be combined with one or more of the respectively listedembodiments to define unified embodiments.

Payment for charge can, in one embodiment, be unified by a process orapplication that shares charge activity and provides revenue back to thesuppliers of the CU. Payment can further be unified by enabling wirelesspayment at a CU. In one example, when an EV reaches a location of a CU,an application can be surfaced to the electronics of the vehicle or to auser's portable device. The application can provide the user withoptions to login or simply accept to proceed with automatic payment forcharge consumed at the CU. Cloud services, which may run one or moreapplications, can maintain logs for the user to show historical chargeactivities and costs.

On the CU side, the supplier of the charge can also receive payment fromthe EV drivers and can be provided with metrics of charge utilization athe one or more CUs in a network of CUs owned or operated by the CUsupplier.

Utility companies or power suppliers can also be provided with metricsof charge use at various CUs, historical charge loads, and times of peakand lows for the various geographically distributed CUs. Utilities cantherefore manage power supplies and power rates more effectively and canfurther populate real time cost per charge rates to EV users, which maydiscourage EV users from seeking charge during peak or more expensivetimes of day.

In one embodiment, methods and systems are provided, which includecharge units (CUs), which include a color indicator on the charge unit(or station) or next to the charge unit. The color indicator, in oneembodiment, is visible so that people in the parking lot or vicinity ofcharging can identify if cars that are connected to a charge station arealready charged (or status of charging) and simply taking up space. Thecharge color indicator can be any color and can be provided with lettersor signs to also communicate information, such as CU available, CU busy,CU out of service, CU in progress. The information can also be forinformation about the EV charging state, such as empty, 10% charged, 20%charged, 30% charged 70% charged, 100% charged, etc. If a color is used,example colors can be yellow 10A (see FIG. 1) to indicate less than 20%full, orange 10B to communicate ˜50% full, light red 10C to communicate˜90% full, red 10D to communicate 100% full (or no service available).

The lights can be activated by a method or circuit to turn on or off,blink, pulse, trigger, or control operation. The lighting can beincandescent lighting, lighting with color coded shields, light emittingdiodes (LEDs), colored LEDs, and the color can change from one color toanother as the charging of an EV progresses (e.g., from yellow to RED,when full). When users drive up to an area or a parking lot with chargestations (or location of charge), EVs connected to the stations publiclyshow their fill state. If an EV is full, for example, it will be evidentthat the EV is simply taking up a space.

If the car (e.g., EV) is taking up space and the owner of the EV walkedaway, a color code at the charge station can be activated. In oneembodiment, when an EV is connected to a CU, the user can be provided acode for the CU. The code can be, for example, a QR code, a number, akey, a bar code, etc. In addition to the code being used by the user ofthe EV, this code can also be used by any person to cause cloud servicesto send a ping or notification to the user/owner of the car.

For instance, if the user has left temporarily to shop while the carcharges, the user may return quickly upon being notified that thecharging is complete or is about to complete. As noted, thisnotification may be in addition to an automatic notification of chargestate or completion. That is, an additional notification may be sent byfrustrated users that may want to park in the spot that is taken up bythe car. To avoid abuse, the notification may be limited to a set numberof notifications.

In one embodiment, the charge stations may have an ID (like a QR Code,number, text ID, etc.) that the user can use to sync to when plugging inthe car. The ID can be used to notify the user when the charge levelreaches full or progresses to charge. If the user does not come back tomove the car, the user can pay a fee to stay in the spot to avoidcitation. In one embodiment, by paying a fee (e.g., remotely by a mobiledevice), the color indicator on the charge spot can be kept at a colorthat is other than full. This will signal to others in the area that theuser taking up the spot is legitimately taking up the spot.

In one embodiment, the user may be parked/plugged in at a charge unit(CU) located at or proximate to a store (the CU at that location isregistered as a charge unit install point (CUIP)). In this embodiment,the store (e.g., a Target) can give the user a discount on the charge orspace time if they buy X in the store, etc. This method allows forproximate retailers to sponsor EV drivers to park proximate to theretailers. This sponsorship or promotion can be published to cloudservices, which allows EV users to know when such promotions areavailable. If the user of the EV is looking for charge, and the useralso needs particular services, and publishing discounts or promotionswill allow EV drivers to select certain CUs over other CUs.

In another embodiment, the user may be at work and plugged in to theemployer's charge spot. If the user leaves the car plugged in past thetime it needs to fill and charge the battery of the electric vehicle(EV), that user may be taking up space that could be used by otherco-workers. In one embodiment, when the user plugs into the CU, the usercan capture the ID of the CU and register to that charge session. Inthis manner, the user can be provided notifications as the charge levelprogresses. The notifications can be by application icons, buzzing,sounds, texts, phone calls, instant messaging, etc. At the time the CUis connected to the user's EV, the user can define how notificationswill be sent to the user. The color indicator of the CU can also changeas the EV progresses to charged. The same color indicators can betransferred to the owner of the EV as the colors progress to the variouscolors of charge. In one embodiment, notifications allow users to movetheir vehicles timely, to allow others to use the CU. In addition, thecolor indicators provide a way to locally alert people driving EVs ifthe CUs are actually being used fairly in a particular location, whetherprivate or pubic.

FIG. 1 shows how one user can identify the color state of a CU while theEV progresses to a charge state. In FIG. 2, a charge bank A, can be alocation where more than one CU is arranged for charging EVs. If a userdrives up to a charge bank A and sees that all slots are taken and thecolor indicators on the CUs show in-progress charging, the user cancapture or input a code of the charge bank A. The code can be used tocommunicate progress information back to the user while the user waitsfor a charging spot to open up. Instead of having to be physicallypresent to see the charge state of the CUs in charge bank A, the usercan login to cloud services to find charge bank A. As shown in FIG. 3,from a remote location, therefore, a user can see the CUs that arelocated at the charge bank A, and also see the color indicators of eachCU. This can be used ahead of time by the driver of the EV to determinewhether he/she wishes to go to charge bank A for charge. For instance,if it looks like spots are available now or the vehicles are nearly allfull, the user can opt to drive to the EV to obtain charge from chargebank A.

Cloud services can also provide an approximation of when a CU will beavailable at bank A, or any other location. Still further, an EV drivercan be provided with a list of CUs in the geo-location of the vehicle,based on which CUs will be available.

Notifications regarding charge bank A or other charge banks, can beprovided to the user as the charge levels change for the CUs. Thisprovides a dynamic level of information that can be communicated tousers regarding current state and projected states of charge. Forexample, probability and other logic can be used to estimate availableof charge a particular CUIPs along the users projected path of drivingor based on the users heading. This information can be provided to thedriver so he/she can select where to attempt to get charge and wait theleast amount of time. Users can also remotely reserve an EV, so that theEV is available when the driver arrives.

This information can also be blended with cost of charge, in case theuser is looking for a lower charge alternative. The notifications can besent to the user's mobile device (e.g., smartphone or the like), or thevehicle electronics of the vehicle and associated displays and GUIs. Thenotifications be sent with color codes or indicators, that show thelevel of charge of the CUs for which the user is interested. The colornotifications can, in real time, be updated as the charge level statuschanges at the CUs.

In one embodiment, a method and system for providing parking slotlocation identification for securing charge, is provided. The methodincludes defining a map of a parking lot with one or more charge units(CUs). The CUs, as shown in FIG. 4, can be located throughout a parkinglot or area. The CUs, in one embodiment, will include a light indicator.The light indictors can be, for example, on top regions of the CUs or onpoles next to the CUs, or simply proximate to the CU. The lights canlight up, for example, above the level of the cars that are parked inthe lot, or, for example, above 3-8 feet from the ground. A driver of anEV can drive into a parking lot, see the lighting of an available CU(e.g., by color code; green available; red occupied, etc.). The lightscan have a blinking function, to signify where CUs are available. Thelocation of available CUs can also be populated as displayable data tothe display screen of an EV (or mobile device) when the EV gets inproximity to CUs that maybe be available.

The indication of availability can also be transferred to the user'smobile device, to signify which CUs are available at a particularlocation. In one embodiment, the CUs and the status of the CUs cancommunicate such data to cloud processing, over the internet. Drivers ofEVs, connected to the internet can also identify where CUs are locatedin a particular parking area having CUs.

In some embodiments, the color indicators can be provided on CUs, whennot in parking lots. For example, if particular CUs are located outsideof a business, the color indicators can have various color shades. Somecolors may indicated availability, in-use, reserved, out-of-service,almost done charging, etc. The color indicators can also be communicatedto users via notifications. The notifications can be to the displays ofEVs or portable devices of the user or to third parties.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example flow chart of a method, wherein colors areused to indicate and convey information regarding charge state of an EV,for one embodiment. The method includes detecting that a charge unit isconnected to a vehicle for charging. The charge level of the vehicle isthen detected. The charge level can be identified, for example, byobtaining data from the vehicle. This data can be obtained by the CUeither by a wired connection to the vehicle, such as a data connectionline along the charging connector.

The data can also be obtained wirelessly by the CU, such as by allowingthe vehicle to wirelessly transfer data to the CU as the chargeprogresses. This wireless communication can include a pairing process orsync or pairing after a user enters in a code or accepts the conditionsor payment options for charge with the CU. The method then includesallowing a color to be activated on the charge unit (CU). As notedabove, this process can be allowed, such that the color indicator in theproximity of the CU is lit or activated so that users in the proximatelocation can see what state the connected EV is, in its chargingprocess. The color can also be transmitted to a user via a notification,such as during the charging process, etc., as noted in this disclosure.

The method also includes changing the color indicator during the chargeprogress to provide the visual status of charging of the vehicle. Themethod includes optionally providing notifications to the user or diverof the EV during the progress or after a period of time, or whencharging is complete. The method can allow payment to be received fromthe EV driver if time is needed to allow the user to move the vehicleafter the charging is complete. This will, in one embodiment, cause thelight indicators to change to an in-progress state. This will alsoassist in local users to not be frustrated, as they will think the EV isstill charging and not done.

As noted above, if the EV is done, and the light indicator shows the EVcharging done, a person that wants the spot can walk up to the CU andpush a button to request the EV owner to move the car. In oneembodiment, if the user pushes the button or does some other input tocause the request, the cloud services can send a notification to the EVowner indicating that people or others wish to use the spot and the EVshould be moved.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a user with a mobile device 12 approaching aCU 10, next to an EV, in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention. The CU 10 may, in one example include a screen or display. InFIG. 7, the user is able to follow directions for obtaining charge fromthe CU 10. The user, in one embodiment, can scan a QR code, and set thecharging instructions, as shown in FIG. 8.

Methods and systems are provided to synchronize user devices with chargeunits (CUs) to being a charging session. As shown in FIG. 6, the usercan arrive to a CU 10 with a device 12. The CU can have a display, whichcan provide instructions for adding charge to the electric vehicle (EV).

FIG. 7 shows a user that has plugged the charging cord to the vehicle,and has scanned a QR code. The cord, in this example, is a chargingconnector that connects to the CU and also allows connection to the EVat a charge port. If the socket on the charging connector does not mateto the EV charge port, a universal plug or adapter can be used. Anadapter can also be used, depending on the type of charging voltage, orprocess needed to charge particular vehicles, as some EV manufacturersuse proprietary plugs or interfaces. Although QR codes are described,other ways to sync the device to a CU to establish a charge session arepossible.

For example, the CU can provide a phone number, a credit card reader, apassword input, a user input interface or touch screen, a bar code, awireless link via WiFi, internet, or Bluetooth, or other connectioninterfacing methods and protocols. The CU may also omit having adisplay, and the EV can simply detect the presence of the CU and ask theuser/driver via an on-board screen if the user wishes to obtain chargeat the CU that is proximate to the vehicle. The EV screens and apps canalso ask the user if they wish to accept a link or pairing with aproximate CU, and then enable screens and GUIs to allow the user toenter codes, sync with payment systems or interfaces and complete thetransaction to obtain charge.

FIG. 8 shows an example screen with instructions, so the user can syncwith the device and select the level of charge. The sync operation canalso be by way of accessing an app over the internet or entering a codeof the CU into an app, which is connected to the internet. Notificationsfor the user, once charge has begun can also be set, either at the CU oron the user's device graphical user interface, or any device connectedto the Internet.

In some embodiments, charge event or session hardware abstraction isdisclosed. In some examples, methods and systems for automaticallyplugging a vehicle to a charge station are provided.

As shown in FIG. 9, a vehicle may arrive at a charging slot. The slotmay be a parking spot, a home, or a commercial location. In thisexample, the user is notified that the space can charge the EV, if theEV has a charge connector system built-in under the vehicle. The chargestation is coupled or has connection to the internet and a driverarriving at the slot may be notified regarding how to connect to charge.For example, a charge management system (CMS) is coupled to an auto plug(AP) that can raise up from the ground surface region and automaticallyconnect to the vehicle.

In one embodiment, a driver can arrive at a parking slot and a sign orsome indicator as shown in FIG. 10, may be provided. The sign can bedigital or not, and can provide information as to how charge ispurchased or enabled. The sign may include, for example, a QR code thatcan be scanned via the user's device, or a URL that can be typed in, oran application can be accessed, or a near field communication (NFC)connection can be established, etc.

Via a user interface, a user can identify how much charge is needed, oridentify the vehicle or account of the user. The AP can then lift up andautomatically connect to a plug on the car. The plug on the car can havea door (under the vehicle) that will automatically open when the AP getsin proximity or reaches the appropriate position. The door or areaaround the door can include sensors or identifying markers that can beidentified by the AP to enable efficient or accurate plugging by the AP.The user (e.g., via a device or in-vehicle electronics/displays), onceconnected to a site for enabling charge, can access his or her account,pay for services, set notification services, access discounts, maps,advertisements, etc. The charge cloud services can, in one embodiment,communicate with CMS of the charge unit install point (CUIP) where thecharge unit (CU) is located.

In an alternative embodiment, the charge access protocol can beinitiated by the vehicle, that communicates wirelessly with the parkingslot to establish a pairing. The paring can provide the user withinformation as to how to connect with services of the charge cloudservices. As shown, the charge cloud services can be connected otherservices or data over the Internet. Examples can include connection touser account services, charge unit CUIDs, CUIP, Ad servers, maps,discount services, notification services, and/or payment services.

In one embodiment, charge events detection and session management can beabstracted. In one embodiment, the system can maintain charge allowanceseparately from the actual hardware of the CU. For example, the user canpay for 10 hours, for example, and use the 10 charge hours at any CUthat will provide access to the charge account. In one embodiment, theuser's account can have a password to enable access to any number ofCUs.

In addition, if charge is purchased by one user, the charge can beshared or transferred to another user. The purchased charge that is notused, in one embodiment, is credited to the user's account. The sharingof charge credit can be made via any device. One some examples, sharingof charge can be by way of wireless device, e.g., by accessing anaccount on the internet, or simply emailing a friend an amount of freecharge to selected CUs or CUs on a particular network.

In some embodiments, charge purchasing can be made via a collectiveaccount, where multiple users join a group to purchase charge. In someembodiments, the group can be a public group and in other embodiments aprivate or semi-private group. By joining a group, charge may bepurchased at reduced rates relative to purchasing charge individually.Purchased charge can, in one embodiment, be defined by a unit of chargeat a unit of cost. Thus, charge can be purchased in advance and/or inbulk by a group to receive favorable pricing. Once charge is purchased,users can use the charge units from one or more CUs over time. In oneembodiment, each contributing member would have their own account,wherein the purchased units of charge are managed. Each user can obtainaccess to their account and view how many units they have available orremaining Members of the group can also trade or sell charge to eachother.

In one embodiment, the charge units can also be shared with other users,e.g., who are not members of the group. For instance, a user cantransmit or share charge units with other users via mobile applications(or any internet connectable device). In one example, mobileapplications have access to servers that manage cloud services. In someembodiments, the groups can be family groups, wherein a family purchasesan amount of charge for use during a period of time. In some cases,families can purchase charge at lower rates when rates are low andstock/save the charge for future use. As defined herein, use of chargemay be when users access CU to charge or fill a vehicle with charge. Asvehicles of the group or a family charge their vehicles with charge, thecredit or bank of charge owned by that group or family will berespectively depleted.

In some cases, groups can purchase charge at various times, such that acost averaged charge value is presented for charge purchased over aperiod of time (e.g., when charge was purchased at different rates). Thecost average of the charge purchased can then be calculated or displayedon a user interface of a device. In some embodiments, charge purchasedin advance may be restricted based on one or more rules. In one example,charge use of purchased charge can have geographic restrictions. Forinstance, if charge is purchased in a geographic region that is remotefrom where charge will be used (e.g., accessed to fill a vehicle), therate of charge may be adjusted or changed based on where the useractually fills the vehicle. At the time of purchase of charge, the usercan be provided with a geographic region in which the charge of thelower rate/cost can be used. If the charge is used in regions outside ofthe geographic area, different rates may apply. These rules can bepre-set or can be dynamically set over time as the cost of chargechanges (e.g., the cost of producing the charge).

In one embodiment, methods for plugging in a vehicle to obtain chargeand syncing a device to pay for charge are provided. For example,methods and systems are provided to synchronize user devices with chargeunits (CUs) to begin a charging session.

FIG. 11 provides an example of a user arriving to a CU (charge unit) 10with a device 12. The CU can have a display, which can provideinstructions for adding charge to the electric vehicle (EV).

FIG. 12 shows that the user has plugged the charging cord to thevehicle, and has scanned a QR code. Although QR codes are described,other ways to sync the device to a CU to establish a charge session arepossible. For example, the CU can provide a phone number, a credit cardreader, a password input, a user input interface or touch screen, a barcode, a wireless link via WiFi, internet, or Bluetooth, or otherconnection interfacing methods and protocols.

FIG. 13 shows an example screen with instructions, so the user can syncwith the device and select the level of charge (e.g., to fill avehicle). The sync operation can also be by way of accessing an app overthe internet or entering a code of the CU into an app, which isconnected to the internet. Notifications for the user, once charge hasbegun can also be set, either at the CU or on the user's device (e.g.,on screens of graphical user interface).

FIG. 14 shows an example where a user named “Bob,” has an establisheduser account, on the screen of a device. The methods of payment, whichmay have been established earlier or can be established at any time, canbe noted on the user interface (UI). The discounts available for the CUcan also be shown to the user on the screen of the device. The discountsmay be obtained from cloud services, where the suppliers of charge andlocal merchants are able to provide discounts. In one embodiment, thesuppliers and local merchants can identify where discounts are to beprovided, e.g., such as which CUs will provide discounts and the type ofdiscounts.

For instance, if a local merchant has a CU local to their store, thelocal merchant may provide discounts for their business at that CU, asthat may drive foot traffic to the merchant's business. In this manner,merchants can identify CUs to provide discounts. For example, while avehicle charges, a user may visit the local merchant. The discounts canbe assigned to specific geo-locations, instead of specific CUs. Forexample, a business with multiple locations can advertise by providingdiscounts at certain CUs located within a geo-location area. Users, in asimilar manner, can scan or find or search geo-locations for CUs, andCUs that offer discounts can be presented to the user. In one example,discounts may be provided when a user visits the local merchant or buysa good or service at the local merchant. Once the user visits or buys atthe local merchant, the merchant may validate the discount to the user.Validation may occur by, for example, sending data to a serverconfirming that the discount is valid, or that the merchant will pay orsponsor part of the charge paid to charge the electric vehicle.

As shown in the figure, “Available Discounts” may be provided in a userinterface of a device, such as when the user finds a charging unit anddecides to obtain charge. A user account of the user may already have apayment process in place, such as stored credit card, Paypal™, NFCcharge, or some other e-commerce payment. One discount example may be,“Buy $10 or more at store X located within 20 feet of the charge unitand get 20% discount,” “Buy $5 in food at store Y located 25 feet fromcharge unit and get 5% discount,” “Read 5 ads and get 10% discount.”

In one embodiment, discounts are not necessarily general advertisements,which may not provide a direct or local or immediate benefit to areader. In general, however, a discount may be considered anadvertisements, however, discounts described herein are specific to acharge unit or charge units at a particular geo-location, and suchdiscounts are targeted toward individuals that may more likely make useof the discounts at a local merchant that may be located proximate tothe particular charge units. To validate the discount, users can visitthe local merchant while the vehicle charges. The discounts can becredit for actual charge bought, discounts on goods or services offeredby the merchant, or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, themerchant can validate the discount by emailing the buyer, providing acredit to the buyer's charging account or user account, providing creditto the user via a service network that provides/sells charge, or providesome other benefit for visiting the merchant's business (e.g., while theelectric vehicle charges).

In one embodiment, a user can take an action at the merchant's location,e.g., store. The action, as shown in the examples, can be to buysomething from a local merchant, visit a location merchant, read adsfrom or about a local merchant, etc. In one embodiment, the discount canbe directly tied to the charge used, and because the merchant offeringthe discount is near or proximate to the charge unit, the user is likelywilling to at least visit the merchant while the user waits for theelectric vehicle to charge. In some embodiments, the discount can alsoapply to goods or services provided to the merchant, such that thediscount can be a hybrid of discount for charge used and discount forgoods and services of the merchant. In these examples, charge used maybe considered used when the user is in progress of filling charge. Forexample, the merchant may provide the discount while the user is in themerchant's store, and the discount may be conditioned on the usercompleting to buy a certain amount of charge and/or buying a certainamount of good or services and/or visiting the merchant. The dynamicadjustment of discounts can occur based on a preset number of rules(e.g., what discount, where offered, when offered, how long it lasts,incentives for fast buy, logic for combining discounts, logic forsharing costs of discounts with others, logic for reducing the cost ofthe charge, etc.), as set by the provider the charge and/or the sponsor.

FIG. 15 shows an example where a user, e.g., Bob, can receive anotification at time to, where the system notifies Bob that his car willbe charged in 5 min. If the user gets this notification, the user canreturn to his car timely (e.g., so the user avoids a penalty foroccupying a charging spot beyond when the vehicle is actively charging).At time t1, the user can receive a notification on his device (e.g.,smartphone or portable device having access to the internet) that hiscar is charged. At time t2, if the user has not yet returned to his car,the user can be provided with a notification that the user must removehis car from the charging spot or else pay a fine or pay a fee to stayin the spot for some time.

If the user decides at time t3 that the user wants to stay in the slot,the user can pay a fee to remain in the slot instead of getting a fine.In one embodiment, if the user is visiting a local store while at timet3, the user can be provided with a notification or data that the usercan purchase some items at the store, e.g., $10, and the user will beallowed to stay in the spot longer. In one embodiment, the CU can have alight indicator that shows the level of charge of the vehicle. If thevehicle charge is near empty (but starting to fill with charge) or low,the light can be green or orange or some other indicating color orlighting, indicating that the user is correctly parked and paying forcharge. If charging is done, the light can turn to red (or some othercolor to indicated charge complete or finished). This will signal toothers in the area that this slot is just holding a car that is full andthe user of the EV may return soon.

If the user gets the notification and decides to pay for time to say inthe slot, the light on the CU may be changed to a color other than red(or change the indicator to not finished or charging is in progress), sothat nearby people will not get annoyed that the vehicle is taking up aCU spot when fully charged.

FIG. 16 illustrates an example of a user's device obtaining a code froma CU at a charge unit install point (CUIP). Cloud services can thenallow the user to access his or her account to setup the chargeservices. In FIG. 17, it is shown that an App of a device or EV canautomatically connect to the charge cloud services. FIG. 18 illustratesan example process when a user logs in to an App, and the App providesthe user, Bob, with information about his vehicle. This information canbe obtained wirelessly by way of the EV sending its info to the cloudservices (or via an App on a user device).

In one embodiment, the App can allow the user to set an amount of chargeto add, which may be based on estimated time to fill. The estimate canbe calculated dynamically, based on the charge in the car and/or basedon a charging rate capability of the CU that the user connects to forcharge. Thus, the time estimate can be accurately determined to allowselection of the charge amount. The selection may be made, for example,based on the amount of time that the user has available for charging.This information can also be translated in terms of miles or distance.For example, the user can be provided with information as to how muchtime it will take to add charge and how much distance that charge mayprovide the EV.

Notifications can also be set for the charge. This allows the user tospecify how many and what type of notifications he or she wishes toreceive. More settings are also available, such as for the car, the CU,or a combination of car and CU.

In one embodiment, a user can plug in a car, and then sync his phone tothe CU. The CU may display a QR code (or other ways as noted above) thatsync to a phone, or the phone (or device) can capture an RFID tag fromcharge station (CU). Once the car starts charging, the phone can displaya progress indicator changing as the charge is ongoing. Once complete,the user may be provided a text (or any other type of message—i.e., touser's device). While the car is charging, the user may get warnings,e.g., 5 minutes till fully charged or till filled up to a point. Thisway, the user can go back to the car and drive away or move the car outof the charge station parking spot.

Methods and systems for charging vehicles in structures or areas arealso disclosed. Systems and structures are provided, which can includeceiling mounted charge cords, as shown in FIG. 19. When the user parks,the ceiling mount cord can drop down for charging the car. In oneexample, if the user parks in a spot, the user can look up (or in theproximity) and see a parking slot number above the car. The user canpunch in the number into the phone/or car display (or sync to the localcommunications interface) to release the cord that is lowered orprovided so the user can plug in the car. This will give the user chargefor the car for a fee and the user can be notified when the charge isdone or its progress.

FIG. 19 further shows a parking structure, which can include one or morefloors. In one embodiment, the structure has cords that connect to theceiling and can move along a track. The cords can be delivered to theuser's parking spot, and the user can connect the cord to the vehicle.The user can also have a vehicle that includes more than one chargecell, and each cell has external connectors to allow more than onecharge cord to connect to the vehicle. This is a multi-charge cordconnection embodiment, which can also provide notifications to theuser's device via charge services. In the example shown, a user mayconnect to the internet to access charge services. The charge servicesmay provide access to a parking garage charge location, which includeslocation identifiers and motor controls. The location identifiers maydefine where the vehicle is in the garage, so that the charge cord canbe delivered or dropped, or made accessible at the location where thevehicle is parked. This provides for flexibility in charge delivery, asparking spots need not be fully dedicated to only charge EVs, but canalso be used by non-EVs.

FIG. 20 illustrates an example of a vehicle having multiple charge cells(e.g., batteries B1 and B2). Each battery can be connected to adifferent CU, e.g., CU1 and CU2 (or one CU with multiple connectors). Inone embodiment, this may allow the vehicle to charge faster. In oneembodiment, the charge units are segmented, to allow faster charging,such as to battery segments B1 and B2, which are connected to a powermanager (MGR). CU1 and CU2 are shown connected, respectively, to B2 andB1, for example. The method provides for separately connecting onecharge unit (CU) to each battery segment. In one embodiment, charge timeis reduced by connecting two or more CUs to two or more battery segmentsof one vehicle. In the illustrated example flow, segmented batteries areprovided for one vehicle.

FIG. 21 illustrates an example where multiple CUs can be connected tomultiple charge units (e.g., segmented batteries) of an EV. Thisprovides for even faster charging, when multiple CUs (or cords of a CU)can connect up to a single vehicle. As shown, multiple CUs (e.g., CU#1,CU#2, CU#3, . . . CU#n) are connected to different batteries or segmentsof batteries B of a single vehicle, which may reduce charge time of avehicle.

FIG. 22 shows how tracking the CEs, the data can be monitored by powerstations to calculate grid local metrics. This data is also stored orexchanged with charge cloud services, which use this data to provideinformation to the gird operators as well as to operators of EVs.Operators of EVs can access the charge cloud services using theirvehicle displays or via electronics (e.g., computers, smart devices,phones, tablets, etc.).

Synchronizing data between the consumers and the providers of chargeenables for efficient distribution of charge and associated consumptionby EV drivers. For example, grid operators can provide data regardingenergy costs at different times of day, which will also enable real-timechanges in electric rates charged at the CUs. In the same way, if thecharge rates are high at particular times, users of EVs can find or beinformed of better times to charge. This information from grid operatorsback to consumers in real time provides feedback mechanisms so consumersknow of changing rates or more optimal times to charge at particular CUlocations. In a way, the grid operators are no longer passive one waysuppliers of power, but can also influence the consumption by users byproviding real-time data back to the CUs and the cloud services thatprovide the information to user's mobile applications and on-boardvehicle applications.

In one embodiment, a method for clustering promotions is described. Whenbusinesses are proximate to each other, the owners are able to clusterpromotions to charge units (CUs). In one embodiment, clusteringpromotions can drive traffic from EVs to stop and get charge atparticular CUs. An example is a coffee shop next to a big box store;both can offer discounts for their charge stations, and the discountscan be joined/shared to increase EV traffic to area.

Cloud services can, in one embodiment, assist in managing theclustering. For example, if one business that provides charge via a CU,can be notified of other businesses that have opted or would like tojoin in on a cluster promotion program. Thus, participants in providingcharge and discounts can be paired based on proximity.

FIG. 23 illustrates an example, where multiple businesses may be locatedproximate to certain CUs. In one embodiment, it is shown that businesslot and grocery store each have CUs located proximate to theirbusinesses. It is also shown that box store, having respective CUs isnot located sufficiently close to business lot and grocery store.

FIG. 24 shows, an example graphical user interface and logic that may beexecuted to find CUs and propose clustering. The proximity can be userselected. A user can login (e.g., the owner of grocery store) to findany other businesses that may be proximately located and may beproviding charge via CUs. Once the proximity is set, on a user interfaceby a user, a set of stores may be populated to the user interface. Forexample, business lot and its CUs may be shown (e.g., CUs M and N). Alsoshown is a proximate business, such as grocery store, which has CUs O,P, Q. The data regarding the available or proximate CUs can be foundusing cloud services which may communicate with a geo-location programas well as a database of CUs and user preferences for the CUs.

For example, if the owners of the CUs post their willingness to offerclustered promotions, those businesses and CUs will be shown. This willallow various owners to arrange a clustered discount. The clustereddiscount can be, for example, a discount on price of charge, or adiscount at business lot and grocery store, or a combination thereof.The owners of the businesses may increase their sales simply byproviding discounts to the CUs and EV owners can be notified of suchdiscounts. Notifications can be provided to the EVs in real time, asdrivers drive their EVs around. Notifications can also be provideddigital devices of users, such as smartphones or other mobile devices.Other embodiments or description is provided regarding CUs, discounts,fees for charging, notifications and cloud processing in co-pending U.S.patent application Ser. No. 13/797,982, filed on Mar. 12, 2013, andentitled “METHODS FOR MANAGING UNIVERSAL IDENTIFIERS (UID) TO VEHICLECHARGE UNITS AND CHARGE POINT INSTALL POINTS, AND CLOUD SERVICES FORPROVIDING PROMOTIONS”, which is herein incorporated by reference for allpurposes.

A number of embodiments are described below, with reference to specificimplementations that refer to vehicles, but such implementations shouldbe broadly construed to include any type of vehicle, structure orobject. Without limitation, vehicles can include any type of movingobject that can be steered, and can include vehicles that are for humanoccupancy or not. Vehicles can include those that are privately owned,owned by corporations, commercially operated vehicles, such as buses,automobiles, trucks, cars, buses, trains, trolleys, etc. Examplevehicles can include those that are combustion engine based, electricengine (EV) based, hybrids, or other types of energy source vehicles.

A cloud processing system, as described herein, will include systemsthat are operated and connected to the Internet or to each other usinglocal networking communication protocols. A cloud processing system canbe defined as an interconnected and distributed physical or virtualsoftware defined network that utilizes virtual or physical processingand storage machines that enable various applications and operatingsystems to facilitate the communication with and between various clientdevices (vehicles, user devices, structures, objects etc.). Thecommunication with and between the various client devices will enablethe cloud processing system to deliver additional processinginformation, data, and real-time metrics concerning data obtained fromother processing systems as well as client feedback data. Thedistributed nature of the cloud processing system will enable users ofvarious vehicles, structures and objects to access the Internet, and bepresented with more flexible processing power that will provide therequested services in a more effective manner.

The processing systems can be defined from various data centers thatinclude multiple computing systems that provide the processing power toexecute one or more computer readable programs. The processing of thecomputer readable programs can produce operations that can respond torequests made by other processing systems that may be local to avehicle's electronic system. For example, a vehicle can includeelectronics that utilize memory and a processor to execute programinstructions to provide services.

In other embodiments, the electronics of a vehicle can synchronize witha user's portable electronics. The user's electronics can include, forexample mobile devices that include smart phones, tablet computers,laptop computers, general-purpose computers, special purpose computers,etc. The various computing devices of the vehicle, and or the computingdevices of the user (smart devices) can be connected to the Internet orto each other. Provided that a user has access or account access to thecloud service, the cloud processing services on the Internet can provideadditional processing information to the electronics of the vehicle.

The wireless communication can include cellular tower communication thatcouples and communicates through various networks to the Internet, toprovide access to cloud processing. Other methods can include providingWi-Fi communication to local Wi-Fi transmitters and receivers, whichcommunicate with cloud processing 120. Other types of communication caninclude radio frequency communication, such as Bluetooth communicationor combinations of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. It should be understood thatvehicle electronics can communicate with cloud processing 120 via anynumber of communication methods, so long as exchanges of data can bemade with cloud processing 120 from time to time.

The communication can be made by vehicle electronics while the vehicleis on or when the vehicle is off, so long as communication andprocessing circuitry of vehicle electronics has a power source. Thepower source can include battery power that powers vehicle electronicsto communicate with cloud processing 120 when vehicle is turned off.When vehicle is turned on, the battery that drives vehicle electronicscan be recharged.

In one embodiment, at a remote location, a user is able to access a userinterface for an application, which provides users access to their useraccounts. A user account can be for a user and the user can add one ormore vehicles, objects, data or appliances for remote reporting, viewingand control. In one embodiment, a user is an owner or user of a vehicle.The user can register the vehicle with a remote service.

The remote service can be accessed over the Internet, such as via awebsite or application of a portable device. The remote service canprovide a multitude of cloud services for the user, such as remotecontrol features, remote viewing services, remote alarm controls, remotecamera activation, remote audio/video recording of the vehicle (i.e.,areas around the vehicle and inside the vehicle). In one embodiment, thevehicle is able to connect to the Internet (e.g., when the vehicleengine is off, on, and/or is occupied or un-occupied) to allow a user,via a remote cloud service, to access features of the vehicle. Thevehicle can be accessed when running, when parked, when stopped, whenmoving, etc. The vehicle and its audio recording devices and videocameras can be accessed from remote locations, to allow users toremotely communicate with the vehicle or with people riding or residinginside the vehicle.

The remote communication can also allow a person to communicate remotelywith people standing outside (or inside) of a vehicle. For instance, ifa user is accessing his or her vehicle from a remote location, camerasinstalled in and/or on the vehicle allow the remote user to see a personstanding proximate to the vehicle. The remote user can then communicatewith a person standing proximate to the vehicle using microphones andspeakers of the vehicle.

In some embodiments described herein, vehicles, structures and objectsmay include circuitry and communication logic to enable communicationwith a cloud processing system over the Internet.

In one embodiment, the services provided by the electronic systems of avehicle can include services that access the various components orsubsystems of a vehicle, such as door locks, service histories, userprofiles, audio settings, entertainment settings, mapping functions,communications systems, telecommunication synchronization systems,speakers, heating and cooling functions, auto-engine start/shut-offremotely via smart devices, remote heating/cooling initiation, remoteface-to-face conferencing, etc. The electronic systems within a vehiclecan also provide a user interface, such as a graphical user interface.The graphical user interface can include a plurality of buttons,controls and transceivers to receive input from a user. The input from auser can also be provided by voice input, facial recognition, eye-retinascans, fingerprint scans, a combination of biometrics, or via acapacitive or regular touchscreen contained or displayed within thevehicle, the vehicle's glass, doors, dashboard etc.

In one embodiment, vehicles can maintain information regarding wherethey are, where they are heading and their destination maintained whichis maintained by GPS and navigation systems on board. The informationcollected and maintained by every vehicle may be mutually exclusive,meaning that only each individual vehicle is aware of its own heading,rate of speed and current location. This information, in one embodimentis crowd sourced and/or crowd shared/consumed for use in for accidentavoidance or other communication. By networking vehicles within acertain radius together, all individually location-aware vehicles becomeaware of all other vehicles in their sphere of influence. Vehicles maynetwork with vehicles in their range using wireless communicationsystems such as but not limited to Wi-Fi, Wi-Gig LTE, cellular, radio,near field communication or other methods.

In one embodiment, the communications of the vehicle and electronics ofthe vehicle will enable direct communication with a user of the vehicle.The user of the vehicle can include, for instance, the owner of thevehicle, a driver of the vehicle, or any third party having access tothe vehicle (either to drive the vehicle, to monitor the vehicleremotely, etc.).

The access to the data can also be encrypted to prevent unauthorizedaccess to the data. GPS and mapping services can also be incommunication with the cloud processing provide data concerning thelocations of the vehicles and activities that occurred to the vehicleswhen at particular locations. The cloud processing can be access by thevehicles themselves using their electronics and communications, viamobile devices, from home, from work, etc.

In some embodiments, the vehicles may establish peer-to-peer links tofacilitate fast transfer of data. In other embodiments, vehicles maylink to each other using pairing algorithms that allow the vehicles toexchange data using WiFi, Bluetooth, near field communication (NFC), orsome other short range communication protocol.

A user's APP homepage may also include dynamically updating sections inwhich interesting information at a given time may be displayed orsurfaced to a user. If a user has parked in a certain parking area, heor she may want to monitor metrics related to incidents that may haveoccurred to his or her vehicle, vehicles around his or her vehicle, anydynamically received alerts, as well as precaution levels. Additionally,a user may choose to configure his or her APP homepage to display themost pertinent audio and video feeds to their needs.

In one embodiment, the vehicles can communicate directly with each othervia a temporary pairing process. The temporary pairing process can beautomatically enabled when vehicles become too close to each other, forexample. When this happens, local communication between the vehicles,such as a peer-to-peer connection, Wi-Fi connection, NFC connection, orBluetooth connection can be established to enable the vehicles to shareinformation concerning their proximity to one another. This localcommunication will enable one or both vehicles to take correctionactions or alert a driver to change course or trigger automaticcollision prevention measures (e.g., more aggressive notifications toone or both operators, slow the speed of one or more vehicles, changethe driving direction of one or more vehicles, etc.). Once the closeproximity communication occurs and some corrective action is made, thedata regarding the occurrence and the actions taken can be communicatedto the cloud system for storage. The information can then be viewed by aregistered user having access to an account for the vehicle(s).

Another embodiment is for a method for providing charge options todrivers of electric vehicles. The method includes receiving dataconcerning charge providing availability from charge locations,receiving a request from processing logic of an electric vehicle, therequest identifying a desire to obtain charge, and determining a currentlocation of the electric vehicle. The method further includesdetermining identification of charge locations in proximity to theelectric vehicle and determining any sponsored rewards offered by thecharge locations. The method communicates to the electric vehicle a pathto one of the charge locations, the path identifying a sponsored rewardoffered at the charge location for the path.

Yet another embodiment, a computer processed method for providing chargeoptions to drivers of electric vehicles is provided. The electricvehicles have wireless access to a computer network. The method includesreceiving data concerning charge providing availability from chargelocations and receiving data concerning sponsored rewards offered by thecharge locations and rules for offering the sponsored rewards. Themethod receives a request from processing logic of an electric vehicle,and the request identifies a desire to obtain charge in route between acurrent location of the vehicle and a destination location. The methodincludes generating a plurality of paths that can be traversed by theelectric vehicle between the current location and the destinationlocation, where each of the paths identify possible charge locations atwhich the electric vehicle can be charged. Each of the possible chargelocations identifying any sponsored rewards offered if the electricvehicle obtains charge at the possible charge locations. The methodincludes forwarding the plurality of paths as options to the user of theelectric vehicle via a user interface. The sponsored rewards areidentified to the user to enable tradeoffs between length of path andreward obtained.

Methods and systems for providing charge options to drivers of electricvehicles are provided. One example method includes receiving dataconcerning charge providing availability from charge locations andreceiving a request from processing logic of an electric vehicle, therequest identifying a desire to obtain charge. The method includesdetermining a current location of the electric vehicle and determiningidentification of charge locations in proximity to the electric vehicle.The method further includes determining any sponsored rewards offered bythe charge locations and communicating to the electric vehicle a path toone of the charge locations, where the path is identified with asponsored reward offered at the charge location if the path is selectedand charge is obtained. The method can be processed by a server andpaths are communicated to vehicles to alert drivers of the electricvehicles of rewards or discounts if charge is obtained from certainlocations. Other embodiments that compliment sponsored paths forobtaining charge are described below, and relate to electric vehiclecharging and reduction of range anxiety.

Embodiments are also described for methods and systems for providingauxiliary charging mechanisms that can be integrated or coupled to avehicle, to supplement the main battery of a vehicle. The auxiliarycharging mechanism can be in the form of an auxiliary batterycompartment that can receive a plurality of charged batteries. Theauxiliary battery compartment can be charged with or without thevehicle, and can be installed or placed in the vehicle to providesupplemental charge to the vehicles main battery. Thus, if the mainbattery becomes depleted, the auxiliary battery compartment, having aplurality of charged batteries, can resume providing charge to thevehicle.

In other embodiments, the auxiliary battery can be one compartment thathas multiple smaller compartments for receiving volt bars (chargingunits), or other battery type charging devices. Further, the auxiliarybattery is interconnected to the main battery of the vehicle, or to abattery distribution or charge distribution-handling unit. In otherembodiments, the auxiliary battery can be inserted into side panels ofthe vehicle, in the front compartment of the vehicle, the floorboard ofthe vehicle, the site support structure of the vehicle, etc.

Cloud processing technology is also provided, which provides processingresources to connected vehicles through a distributed network. In oneembodiment, the cloud processing can communicate with various chargingstations using Internet connections, where charge Station metrics can beuploaded to the cloud processing system. The charge Station metrics caninclude availability of charge pumps, charge handles, charge plugs,charge mats (for wireless charging), volt bars, or other chargeproviding facilities.

Examples of such metrics can include the number of charge pumpsavailable at particular period of time, historical availability times ofthe charge pumps, typical charge time estimates at particular chargingstations, prices associated with the charge at the particular chargingstations, feedback from customers through social networks, concerningthe charging stations, and the like. The cloud processing can thenprocess the charge Station status, traffic information associated withlocations around or between charging stations and a user's currentlocation, and provide specific suggested routes. The route generator canprovide guided routes to the various charging stations (e.g., chargelocations), based on the users immediate needs, desire for discounts,sponsored rewards, or the amount of time it will take to obtain accessto a charge pump at a particular point in time. Broadly speaking, adiscount is a reward and a reward is a discount, and a sponsored rewardis a discount that is at least partially paid by another party for a thebenefit of the recipient of the reward.

The driver location processor can communicate the information concerningdrivers to the cloud processing logic, so as to provide the mosteffective information concerning charge availability to the variousdrivers. For example, users in their particular vehicles may have aconnected display or a portable device having access to the Internet.Based on the users location and charging needs, (and optionally thedestination) the user can be provided with route options (e.g., one ormore optional paths). The route options can be, for example, the fastestand most available charge Station (or charge providing devices) to theusers current location, the cheapest charge available at a particularpoint in time, or information regarding charge prices for a particularfuture point in time.

Once the user selects a route option, the route generator can provideinformation concerning the charging station, and can also prepay or booka charging station slot. A charging station slot can include, forexample a parking spot in front of a charging station. The chargingstation slot can be reserved if the user decides to prepay for thecharging station, as a convenience. For example, if charging slots at aparticular charge station appear to be heavily used, a user canpre-reserve a charging slots ahead of time, so that when the userarrives at the charging station, the charging slot will be immediatelyavailable. This could be considered a convenience fee associated withpre-reserving of a charging slot, along a particular route. In anotherembodiment, the charging station can provide incentives to users to cometo the particular charging station.

For example, if the user prepays for charge at a particular chargingstation, the charging station can provide a discount on the chargeprovided. For example, if the charging station wishes to fill aplurality a charging slots during a particular slow time, the chargingstation can communicate with the cloud processing and publishavailability of its charging stations per particular period of time. Adatabase associated with cloud processing will hold this information soit can be dynamically updated and accessed in real-time by users to filltheir charging needs of their electric vehicles. During that particularperiod of time, the charging station can offer discounts or rewards tousers so that drivers can decide to visit the charging station insteadof another charging station. Still further, charging stations can offerdiscounts for users to use the particular charging station, and thediscounts can be offered by more than one party or entity. For instance,if the charging stations are located near a particular business, thatparticular business can sponsor discounts or rewards at the chargingstation to drive traffic to or near that particular business. When usersare charging their vehicles at the particular station near theparticular business, users can spend their time at the particularbusiness while their vehicle is being charged.

Potentially, the owners of the particular business that sponsored thediscounts can increase traffic to their business and increase sales. Inanother embodiment, the owners of the particular business can offerdiscounts to their business products or services, if the businessproducts or services or located near or beside the charging station. Aswill be described below, other embodiments can include having chargingstation pumps or handles or plugs, located in nontraditional chargingstation configurations. For example, charging plugs can be installed atvarious nontraditional locations, such as parking lots of retail stores.Other examples locations can include, without limitation, parks, citystreets, parking garages, post offices, government areas, schools,offices complexes or campuses, coffee shops, malls, strip malls, boxstore parking lots, beach parking, homes, public roads, etc. If a largeretail store has a large parking lot, a portion of that parking lot canbe dedicated for charging plugs, which can be used by customers whilethe customers shop at the retail location. In such a situation, theowners of the retail store that have charging plugs assigned toparticular parking spots, can publish availability of those chargingplugs through the cloud processing network.

The cloud-processing network can then publish availability and pricesfor users that may be driving around, or may be passing by the retailstore along a particular path or route. In some embodiments, the retailstore can offer significant discounts for charge, if users charge theirvehicles at the charging plugs of the retail store. While the userscharge their vehicles, the users may visit the retail store and purchasegoods or services, which is a reward for the retailer that is offeringthe discount for the charge. In still another embodiment, retail storeshaving charge plugs can advertise availability of the charge plugs (andparking spots) in real time, and provide discounts or deals to usersthat may wish to charge at the particular retail location.

The discounts can be for the goods and services of the retail store, orsimple discounts on the charge provided by the charge plugs of theretail store. As noted above, one embodiment would allow the parkingspots having the charge plugs to be reserved and advance, to provideadditional convenience to users. In such a configuration, the parkingspots can include mechanical barriers that lift and close to allowvehicles to come into and leave the particular parking spots. Thus if aparking spot is reserved, the mechanical barrier can remain closed untilthe vehicle having the code can communicate access to lift themechanical barrier so that charging can commence immediately uponarriving at the reserved parking spot. In another embodiment, thecharging station or plug can include a monitor or display that indicateswhether or not the charging plug is reserved.

If the charging plug is reserved, no other user can park in front of theparking spot, or else received a ticket or fine for parking in a parkingspot that's been reserved. The parking spot reservation for charge canbe made in advance; such as while user is driving around smart phone, oran integrated device of the vehicle that has access to the Internetmakes looking for charge and the reservation. The transaction can alsoallow a user that is searching for charge to prepay for the charge usinga graphical user interface or other exchange mechanism, associated withthe route and reservation of a particular charge station or slot. Insome embodiments, the charge stations or plugs can be placed in sharedparking lots or locations where multiple retail outlets reside.

In such a case, multiple retailers can provide discounts to users tocome and use the charging stations located at the retailer's locations.These discounts can then be published to the cloud processing logic.These discounts can also be published dynamically at the request of theprovider of the charge, using an Internet portal that allows the user toparticipate in a network of charge stations that provide discounts. Insuch embodiments, the discounts can be provided by multiple retailersfor their goods and services, and the plug can be located in the sharedparking lot. Having this information, the cloud processing cancommunicate with a route generator to generate various routes (e.g.,paths) that are optimized to the user's desired outcome.

The optimization can be to route a user for charge along a plurality ofcharge stations or plugs that provide discounts. If this is the goal ofthe user, the route may be longer than other routes, but the discountsmay be greater. Such routes may be viewed as a sponsored path thatrequires a user to traverse a particular route in order to obtain chargefor their vehicle. The sponsored routes can change dynamically overtime, as sponsors decide to add or remove discounts. Thus, a user thatfinds a good path may wish to buy now, to avoid losing the discount. Ifa particular charge station or chart plug has a lot of customers duringa particular period to time, the discounts may drop dynamically. If thecharge plug for station experiences low activity, the discounts may beincreased dynamically.

The cost for the charge can also be provided with a green rating, whichsignifies how efficient the charge station is in supplying charge, andthe location and source of the charge provided by the charging station.If the charging station obtains charge from wind power, the green ratingwould be high. If the charge station receives its charge from fossilfuels, the green rating may be lower. If the charging station receivesis charge from a variety of different sources, whether solar, wind, orfossil fuel, the green rating can be adjusted. This metric informationcan then be provided to the cloud processing to allow users of electricvehicles to decide whether or not to visit a particular charge stationor charge plug.

In some embodiments, the price of the charge may be more expensive ifthe green rating is very high, but the charge value to the user may behigh, if the user wishes to obtain a very high green rating, and a lowercarbon footprint.

For example if the user wishes to replace the vehicle, the user cansimply click a button, select an icon, touch a screen, speak a command,gesture an input, etc., to figure out what his vehicle value is, thecost of a replacement vehicle, and the total cost after exchange. Thisinformation can be useful to the user in deciding whether or not totrade in the vehicle or remain with the current vehicle and makeinvestments in repairs. As shown, the data exchange between vehicles andthe vehicles and the cloud processing can be extensive, but suchinformation can be made available to drivers of those vehicles to makeinformed decisions.

The drivers can also be provided with information of the duration of thediscount, so that drivers can obtain the discount if they have the timeto traversed the path, or avoid the path if the discount will not bepresent when the driver arrives at that application. In anotherembodiment, the logic in the vehicle or the processing system in thecloud processing can determine whether or not the user would be able toarrive at each of the charging stations or plugs to receive the sponsordiscounts. This analysis can include, for example, reviewing trafficpatterns, travel speeds and estimates to traversed the differentdistances, time of day, etc.

In some embodiments, the discounts are provided by a combination of thecharge station and retail shops nearby. In other embodiments, the retailshops and plugs/charge providers can provide combined packages ofdiscounts, which could drive users to their location. Accordingly, itshould be understood that the dynamic generation of paths could besponsored, such that the user can be provided with identification ofcharging locations along a particular path, and the discounts that maybe provided along those particular paths.

Again, the information displayed to the user can be displayed in thevehicle's display screen or can be displayed on the users display device(e.g. smart phone, computer, tablet, etc.).

Broadly speaking and without limitation, obtaining charge will includeplugging the vehicle into a charging receptacle so as to charge thenative battery of the vehicle. In another embodiment, obtaining chargecan also include refilling on volt bars to replenish volt bars that havebeen used during the vehicle usage. In other embodiments, charge can betransferred to a vehicle wirelessly (e.g., without plugging in an outletor receptacle). Examples can include a transfer surface that the vehicleparts over, and the charge can be transferred wirelessly to the vehiclevia conductors on the underside of the vehicle. The vehicle can simplypart in the slot and once payment is made, the charge can start to flowcapacitively or wirelessly to the electric vehicle.

As can be appreciated, the sponsored path process can provide a quickand efficient manner for allowing the user to identify their desiredendpoint, and provide options for traversing a path to that and point.Along that endpoint, the user can be provided with discounts for chargeby sponsors, which can influence or drive people to their chargingoutlets. The discounts can also be provided in a hybrid manner, such asproviding discounts for the charge and discounts with in the retailoutlets that are located proximate to the charging stations.

Providing this information to drivers in real time is efficient for bothdrivers and the retail locations. Drivers in their electric vehicleswill need charge, and providers of the charge will benefit from drivingusers to their location. If the user is still progressing along theirdesired path, the providers of the discount are simply providing aservice and driving customers to their location, where the drivers maypurchase other goods and services while the vehicle is being charged.

In one embodiment, the sponsored paths may be generated on electronicsand circuitry of the vehicle, or by processing in the cloud processingsystem (e.g. networked Internet systems). In some embodiments, thesponsor paths may be processed partially on the vehicle and partially onthe cloud processing system. In some embodiments, the sponsored pathswould be dynamically generated on the cloud processing system, and thevehicle or smart phone of the user would simply connect to the cloudprocessing system.

The data exchange can therefore be dynamically set to be real time, suchthat providers of the discounts, providers of the charge, and drivers ofthe vehicles can exchange information. In this example, the provided tothe charge can provide discount information, incentives, etc., and thedrivers of the vehicles can provide information concerning their desiredpaths. The processing system can then generate a plurality of optionsfor the user to traverse from point A to point B. For example, the usercan select to traverse a sponsored path, to a particular address. Thedisplay the vehicle can then requested the user identify whether or nota sponsored path is desired.

It will be obvious, however, to one skilled in the art, that the presentinvention may be practiced without some or all of these specificdetails. In other instances, well known process operations have not beendescribed in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the presentinvention.

Embodiments of the present invention may be practiced with variouscomputer system configurations including hand-held devices,microprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumerelectronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers and the like. Theinvention can also be practiced in distributed computing environmentswhere tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linkedthrough a wire-based or wireless network.

With the above embodiments in mind, it should be understood that theinvention could employ various computer-implemented operations involvingdata stored in computer systems. These operations are those requiringphysical manipulation of physical quantities. Usually, though notnecessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magneticsignals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared andotherwise manipulated.

Any of the operations described herein that form part of the inventionare useful machine operations. The invention also relates to a device oran apparatus for performing these operations. The apparatus can bespecially constructed for the required purpose, or the apparatus can bea general-purpose computer selectively activated or configured by acomputer program stored in the computer. In particular, variousgeneral-purpose machines can be used with computer programs written inaccordance with the teachings herein, or it may be more convenient toconstruct a more specialized apparatus to perform the requiredoperations.

The invention can also be embodied as computer readable code on acomputer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any datastorage device that can store data, which can thereafter be read by acomputer system. The computer readable medium can also be distributedover a network-coupled computer system so that the computer readablecode is stored and executed in a distributed fashion.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail forpurposes of clarity of understanding, it will be apparent that certainchanges and modifications can be practiced within the scope of theappended claims. Accordingly, the present embodiments are to beconsidered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is notto be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified withinthe scope and equivalents of the description and claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising, receiving data, at aserver, indicative that a user account has accessed a charging unit forcharging an electric vehicle, the charging unit having an indicator thatidentifies an active charging status while the electric vehicle ischarging using the charging unit and identifies a complete chargingstatus when the electric vehicle is finished charging using the chargingunit; receiving data, at the server, indicative of a status of charge ofthe electric vehicle during the charging; sending a notification to adevice having access to the user account regarding said status of chargeduring the charging of the electric vehicle, the notificationidentifying a current level of charge of the electric vehicle and anestimate of a time remaining to finish charging the electric vehicle;and receiving an instruction, from the device, to maintain the indicatorof the charging unit in the active charging status for a set period oftime after the electric vehicle is finished charging, wherein theinstruction is received at the server, the server then sends data to thecharge unit to maintain the indicator of the charging unit in the activecharging status even when the electric vehicle has reached the completecharging status, the method being executed by a processor.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the indicator is a feature of the charge unit thatilluminates to display a color, the color that is displayed isindicative of the status of charge of the electric vehicle during thecharging, wherein the color is defined by one or more colors dependingon the status of charge of the electric vehicle; wherein at least one ormore of the colors represents the active charging status; wherein atleast one or more of the colors represents the complete charging status.3. The method of claim 1, wherein the notification is saved to the useraccount for access from an application or a website via the device, thedevice being one of a mobile device, vehicle electronics of the vehicle,or a computer, wherein the user account is accessible via the internetthat provides communication to the server and storage associated withthe server.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the access of the chargingunit for charging the electric vehicle includes receiving payment viathe user account, the user account having access to a history of chargeactivity.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein a user interface of thedevice or a user interface of the electric vehicle receives data fromthe server to surface an application when the electric vehicle isdetermined to have arrived at the charge unit, the application beingconfigured to provide options to login or accept to proceed with anautomatic payment for charging the electric vehicle.
 6. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the current level of charge sent to the device is sentso that a user interface of the device shows a graphic of the currentlevel of charge as the current level of charge changes to become morecharged or finishes charging.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein theestimate of the time to charge is dynamically calculated based on acurrent charge level of the electric vehicle and a charging ratecapability of the charge unit.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein theinstruction from the device includes data enabling payment of a feecharged to the user account to enable the maintaining of the indicatorof the charging unit in the active charging status.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the set period of time is based on a fee paid via theuser account or paid by a sponsoring merchant that is local or proximateto the charge unit.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the charge unitincludes a message function to enable users proximate to the charge unitto send a message to the user account requesting that the electricvehicle be moved when the indicator identifies the complete chargingstatus.